General David Petraeus nominated as new commander of US forces in Afghanistan
CNN reported that President Hamid Karzai has vocally expressed his support for General McChrystal and called him the "best" commander for the war in Afghanistan. But, the Afghans apparently are puzzled about the McChrystal controversy and are asking what's the fuss about.
Chain of command and respect for civilian authority may be hard to understand in a country that seems to be in perpetual war.
Below is President Obama's Statement on General McChrystal and Afghanistan. The transcript is here.
"[W]ar is bigger than any one man or woman, whether a private, a general, or a president."
....
"The conduct represented in the recently published article does not meet the standard that should be set by a commanding general. It undermines the civilian control of the military that is at the core of our democratic system."
....
"It is also true that our democracy depends upon institutions that are stronger than individuals. That includes strict adherence to the military chain of command, and respect for civilian control over that chain of command. And that’s why, as Commander-in-Chief, I believe this decision is necessary to hold ourselves accountable to standards that are at the core of our democracy."
No comments:
Post a Comment